Shaping tool for planar sheets

ABSTRACT

A portable tool for reshaping deformed panels comprises a vacuum cap for gripping a dented panel and force transmitting means coupled to the vacuum cup to apply an external operating force to pull the dented portion outwardly with the cup. The force transmitting means includes a rigid bar having means for applying a pulling force thereto and a coupling means pivotally connected at one end to the vacuum cup and adjustably mounted at the opposite end to the rigid bar. The adjustable mounting may be locked at selected positions along the bar. Other features are disclosed.

United States Patent 1191 Holsappleet al,

[111 3,712,106 [4 1 Jan. 23, 1973 [541 SHAPING TOOL FOR PLANAR SHEETS [75] Inventors: Olen Wade Holsapple; Edward Joe Holsapple; Jerry Raymond llolsapple, all of Salem, Ill.

[73] Assignee: Raymond P. Wolgast, Burkley,

. Mich.

[22] Filed: July 24, 1968 [211 App]. No.: 747,178

[52] U.S. Cl. ..72/309, 72/458, 72/465,

72/705 [51] Int. Cl. ..B21d 5/04, B2lj 13/08, B2lb 25/00 [58] Field of Search ..72/705, 458, 304, 309, 465

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,725,9l7 12/1955 Kauppi ..72/705 3,091,983 6/1963 Kliss ..72/705 2,696,240 l2/l954 Crowder ..72/705 2,749,795 6/1956 Boykin ..72 705 2,771,933 11 195 Edwards ..72 705 2,957,376 10 1960 Parisi ..72 705 Primary ExaminerCharles W. Lanham Assistant Examiner-Michael J. Keenan Attorney-Hume, Clement, Hume & Lee

[57] ABSTRACT A portable tool for reshaping deformed panels comprises a vacuum cap for gripping a dented panel and force transmitting means coupled to the vacuum cup to apply an external operating force to pull the dented portion outwardly with the cup. The force transmitting means includes a rigid bar having means for applying a pulling force thereto and a coupling means pivotally connected at one end to the vacuum cup and adjustably mounted at the opposite end to the rigid bar. The adjustable mounting may be locked at selected positions along the bar. Other features are disclosed.

l 1 Claims, 2 Drawing Figures PATENTEDJAH 23 I975 Inventor Olen Wade Holsapple, EdwardJoe Holsupple a Allys.

SHAPING TOOL FOR PLANAR SHEETS INTRODUCTION The present inventionrelates to a tool for use in reshaping deformed planar sheets such as metal panels used in automobile bodies. Specifically, the tool is meant for use in automobile body shops for the purpose of reshaping dented automobile panel surfaces.

Whereas in the past automobile'dents have been removed from panels by forced applied at the oftentimes inaccessible inward side of the panel, the tool of the present invention permits the reshaping of the deformed area of a sheet panel to be completed from the outward side, thereby rendering the repair of automobiles much more convenient and inexpensive.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The invention contemplates a tool for reshaping deformed planar sheets such as metal sheets of automobile panels which contemplates the use of an elongated bar, a press pad, an adjustable means for mounting the press pad to the elongated bar, a vacuum cup, a mounting means for the vacuum cup, and a vacuum pump for drawing a vacuum on the vacuum cup. In the arrangement of the invention, one end of the elongated bar is the operating end to which external force is applied, and one of the mounting means for the press pad and vacuum cup is mounted to the other end of the elongated bar, with the other of the mounting means positioned intermediate the ends of the bar. With the vacuum drawn on the vacuum cup, the tool is held to the deformed metal sheet, and by applying a force to the operating end of the elongated bar counter to the holding force applied at the vacuum cup, forces are applied to the planar sheet at both the area of the press pad and the vacuum cup, which forces can be utilized for reshaping the deformed areas of the planar sheets.

The invention, both as to its construction and method of use, will be better understood from a review of the specification in conjunction with the drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 shows in partial schematic form a side view of the tool in accordance with the invention including the vacuum pump and electrical circuit therefor; and

FIG. 2 is a partial schematic, in side view, of a variation of the tool shown in FIG. 1.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Turning to the drawings, in FIG. I the tool is com-' prised essentially of the elongated rigid bar 12 having at one end the handgrip 14. Supported on the bar 12 are three mounting sleeves l6,l8 and 20. Connected to the mounting sleeve 16 is a press pad or fulcrum means 22 which serves as a fulcrum point about which a force is applied to remove a dent from a panel; connected to the mounting sleeve 18 is a vacuum pad 24; and connected to the mounting sleeve 20 is a vacuum pad 26. Appropriate piping 28 extends jointly from the vacuum pads 24 and 26 to a motor-driven vacuum pump 30. The vacuum pump is controlled by controlling the operation of the associated electric motor 31 through an electrical switch 32 extending between the motor and the source of electrical supply.

As mentioned previously, the mounting sleeves l6, l8 and 20 are identical, and giving consideration to the construction of the mounting sleeves, it will be noted that the mounting sleeve 16 is comprised essentially of a T-shaped structure of which the head 36 of the T is hollow and open-ended so as to permit it to slide freely on the bar 12. The leg 37 of the T is threaded so as to receive an extension screw 38 to which the press pad 22 is mounted. The screw 38 is connected to the press pad 22 by means of a ball and socket arrangement 39. The padding 41 of the press pad is composed of a conformable material such as sponge rubber secured to a backplate 42. It is to be appreciated that each of the other mounting sleeves l8 and 20 are constructed in an identical manner.

The vacuum cups 24 and 26 are identical to one another and are of conventional, commercial construction available on the market. The vacuum cup 24 is composed of a backplate 46 to which there is secured a substantially round, deformable scuff pad 47. Communicating with the interior surface of the scuff pad 47 is a pipe 48 connected through a shutoff valve 49 and a tee 50 to the main piping 28 extending to the vacuum pump 30. In this instance where the vacuum cups are in tandem, the main line may also include in it a master shutoff valve 51. While referred to here as piping, it is fully appreciated that the connections between the vacuum pump and the vacuum cups 24 and 26 may be conventional, flexible vacuum hosing.

The tool 10 is illustrated in the drawing to be mounted to a substantially planar surface 60, here shown to have in it deformations 61 and 62. In use, those deformations are reshaped in the planar surface by closing the switch 32 which in turn operates the motor 31 and the vacuum pump 30. Assuming the valves 51, 49 and 49 to be open, vacuum is applied to the vacuum cups 24 and 26 so that when they are positioned over the deformations 61 and 62, the entire tool 10 is held in close engagement with the planar surface 60. If the press pad 22 does not initially engage the planar surface 60, the screw 38 associated therewith is adjusted until the pad extends itself sufficiently to meet and engage the surface 60. Thereupon, the force exerted on the surface 60 by the vacuum in the vacuum cups is indicated by the arrows a and a and the resultant force on the deformations 61 and 62 is noted by the arrows indicated with notations b and b.

Thereafter, when a force is manually applied to the handle 14 in a direction counter to the force a and a, the static forces on the deformations 61 and 62 are made dynamic whereby the total force b and b is increased thereby tending to smooth out the deformations 61 and 62 into the planar configuration of the sheet 60. At the same time, the sheet 60 in the area of the press pad or fulcrum means 22 will have applied to it a force designated by the notation c tending generally to deform that area of the planar surface 60. In use, the

, press pad is positioned so as to avoid causing the planar surface 60 to be deformed from its planar surface.

It is to be understood that the tool has the total facility of utilizing the press pad 22 for purposes of smoothing out any extensions that might exist in the planar surface 60. In such an instance, the vacuum cup 26, for example, would be turned off at the shutoff valve 49' and removed from the surface of the planar sheet 60 so that the unit would pivot around the ball joint associated with the vacuum cup 26. The deforming force could then be utilized for smoothing out any protrusions in the planar surface 60.

The arrangement of FIG. 2 includes essentially the same elements as that of FIG. 1, the common elements being identified by the same reference characters. in this instance, however, only one vacuum cup 24 is illustrated and the press pad 22, instead of being made up ofa deformable material such as sponge rubber, is in itself a small vacuum cup 71. As vacuum cups are generally made of rubber material, a vacuum cup does have a padding effect in and of itself. Here, the use of a vacuum cup as a press pad gives the additional facility of permitting the tool to be secured to the planar sheet even when the main vacuum cup 24 is not being used. In that regard, it is obvious that the vacuum cup and the press pad in the arrangements of both FIGS. 1 and 2 can be moved on the bar 12 and secured by means of the set screw 40 and that the various mounting sleeves can be either fixedly secured to the rod 12 so as not to permit sliding movement on the rod or movably secured to the rod 12 so as to permit relative motion between the mounting sleeve and the rod 12. This ability lends considerable flexibility to the use of the tool.

Referring again to FIG. 2, in this instance the external force applied to the handle 14 is toward the planar surface 60 although the relative action of the press pad 22 and the vacuum cup 24 remains the same as explained above relative to FlG. l.

The forces employed in this tool are relatively small with the vacuum cups having a force holding power of approximately 200 pounds, although this is not designated in any way as critical or a limitation. lt is appreciated that variations and modifications can be made in the arrangement without departing from the scope or the intent of the invention and such variations and modifications are sought to be covered by the claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A portable tool for shaping a deformed planar sheet comprising:

force transmitting means comprising an elongated rigid bar, one end of which is designated the operating end;

a press pad;

first means for mounting said press pad to said elongated bar so as to adjust said press pad for engagement with a deformed planar sheet;

a vacuum cup adapted to conformably engage the exterior surface of said deformed panel; means for applying a vacuum to said vacuum cup for positively evacuating the interior atmosphere of said cup to selected vacuum levels thereby to cause predetermined positive gripping engagement of said cup with said deformed planar sheet;

second means for mounting said vacuum cup to said elongated bar so as to adapt said vacuum cup for engagement with said deformed planar sheet, said second means comprising means pivotally connected at one end to said gripper means and adjustably mounted at its opposite end to said elongated bar;

means for locking said mounting means at selected positions on said bar;

one of said first and second means being mounted to the end of said elongated bar opposite to that of said operating end, the other of said first and second means being mounted intermediate the ends of said elongated bar whereby upon application of a vacuum to said vacuum cup said tool is held to said deformed planar sheet and said tool is adapted to shape said deformed planar sheet by pivoting of said operating end about said press pad.

2. The tool for shaping deformed planar sheets as set forth in claim 1 wherein said vacuum cup is provided with a soft, compressible scuff pad so that with said vacuum cup placed on a deformed area of a planar sheet and a vacuum applied thereto said tool is pivotal about said press pad in the plane normal to said planar sheet, whereby upon application of a force at said operating end in the plane normal to said planar sheet and in a direction counter to the moment of force of the vacuum cup whereby said tool is pivoted about said press pad and said vacuum cup drawn against the deformed area to the limit of the holding force of said vacuum cup.

3. The tool for shaping deformed planar sheets as set forth in claim 1 wherein said press pad is provided with a substantially smooth surface so that with said press pad placed at a deformed area of a planar sheet and a vacuum applied to said vacuum cup the tool is held pivotal about the vacuum cup in the plane normal to said planar sheet whereby upon application of a force at said operating end in the plane normal to said planar sheet and in a direction counter to the moment of force of the vacuum cup from said press pad whereby said press pad is pressed in a smoothing action against the deformed area of the planar sheet.

4. A tool for reshaping deformed planar sheets as set forth in claim I, wherein said first means is mounted to said other end of said elongated bar and wherein said second means is mounted to said elongated bar intermediate the ends thereof.

5. A tool for reshaping deformed planar sheets as set forth in claim 1, wherein said first means is mounted to said elongated bar intermediate the ends thereof, and wherein said second means is mounted to said elongated bar at said other end thereof.

6. A tool for reshaping deformed planar sheets as set forth in claim 2, wherein the surface on said press pad comprises a vacuum cup.

7. Portable apparatus for correctively removing indentations from metal panels and the like comprising: vacuum actuated gripper means having a resilient cup member adapted to conformably engage the exterior surface of an indented panel portion, means communicating with and selectively operable for positively evacuating the interior atmosphere of said cup member to selected vacuum levels thereby to cause predetermined positive gripping engagement thereof with said surface of a said panel portion, and force transmitting means coupled to a central zone of said gripper means and operable to apply external operating force to the latter appropriate to pull the indented portion of said panel outwardly with the cup member; said force transmitting means comprising an elongated rigid bar having means for applying pulling force thereto, and the means for coupling said transmitting means to said gripper means comprising rigid means pivotally connected at one end by ball and socket means to said gripper means and. at its opposite end to mounting means slidable mounted on said bar, and means for locking said mounting means at selected positions on said bar.

8. Portable apparatus for correctively removing indentations from metal panels and the like comprising:

panel outwardly with the cup member, said force transmitting means comprising an elongated rigid bar having means for applying pulling force thereto, and the means for coupling said transmitting means to said gripper means comprising means pivotally connected at one end to said gripper means and adjustably mounted at its opposite end to said bar, and means for locking said mounting means at selected positions on said bar.

9. The portable apparatus of claim 8 and further including fulcrum means coupled to said rigid bar and serving as a fulcrum point for applying said operating force to said gripper means.

10. The portable apparatus of claim 9 in which said elongated rigid bar includes first and second opposed ends and in which said fulcrum means is pivotally coupled to one of said opposed ends of said elongated rigid bar. 

1. A portable tool for shaping a deformed planar sheet comprising: force transmitting means comprising an elongated rigid bar, one end of which is designated the operating end; a press pad; first means for mounting said press pad to said elongated bar so as to adjust said press pad for engagement with a deformed planar sheet; a vacuum cup adapted to conformably engage the exterior surface of said deformed panel; means for applying a vacuum to said vacuum cup for positively evacuating the interior atmosphere of said cup to selected vacuum levels thereby to cause predetermined positive gripping engagement of said cup with said deformed planar sheet; second means for mounting said vacuum cup to said elongated bar so as to adapt said vacuum cup for engagement with said deformed planar sheet, said second means comprising means pivotally connected at one end to said gripper means and adjustably mounted at its opposite end to said elongated bar; means for locking said mounting means at selected positions on said bar; one of said first and second means being mounted to the end of said elongated bar opposite to that of said operating end, the other of said first and second means being mounted intermediate the ends of said elongated bar whereby upon application of a vacuum to said vacuum cup said tool is held to said deformed planar sheet and said tool is adapted to shape said deformed planar sheet by pivoting of said operating end about said press pad.
 2. The tool for shaping deformed planar sheets as set forth in claim 1 wherein said vacuum cup is provided with a soft, compressible scuff pad so that with said vacuum cup placed on a deformed area of a planar sheet and a vacuum applied thereto said tool is pivotal about said press pad in the plane normal to said planar sheet, whereby upon application of a force at said operating end in the plane normal to said planar sheet and in a direction counter to the moment of force of the vacuum cup whereby said tool is pivoted about said press pad and said vacuum cup drawn against the deformed area to the limit of the holding force of said vacuum cup.
 3. The tool for shaping deformed planar sheets as set forth in claim 1 wherein said press pad is provided with a substantially smooth surface so that with said press pad placed at a deformed area of a planar sheet and a vacuum applied to said vacuum cup the tool is held pivotal about the vacuum cup in the plane normal to said planar sheet whereby upon application of a force at said operating end in the plane normal to said planar sheet and in a direction counter to the moment of force of the vacuum cup from said press pad whereby said press pad is pressed in a smoothing action against the deformed area of the planar sheet.
 4. A tool for reshaping deformed planar sheets as set forth in claim 1, wherein said first means is mounted to said other end of said elongated bar and wherein said second means is mounted to said elongated bar intermediate the ends thereof.
 5. A tool for reshaping deformed planar sheets as set forth in claim 1, wherein said first means is mounted to said elongated bar intermediate the ends thereof, and wherein said second means is mounted to said elongated bar at said other end thereof.
 6. A tool for reshaping deformed planar sheets as set forth in claim 2, wherein the surface on said press pad comprises a vacuum cup.
 7. Portable apparatus for correctively removing indentations from metal panels and the like comprising: vacuum actuated gripper means having a resilient cup member adapted to conformably engage the exterior surface of an indented panel portion, means communicating with and selectively operable for positively evacuating the interior atmosphere of said cup member to selected vacuum levels thereby to cause predetermined positive gripping engagement thereof with said surface of a said panel portion, and force transmitting means coupled to a central zone of said gripper means and operable to apply external operating force to the latter appropriate to pull the indented portion of said panel outwardly with the cup member; said force transmitting means comprising an elongated rigid bar having means for applying pulling force thereto, and the means for coupling said transmitting means to said gripper means comprising rigid means pivotally connected at one end by ball and socket means to said gripper means and at its opposite end to mounting means slidable mounted on said bar, and means for locking said mounting means at selected positions on said bar.
 8. Portable apparatus for correctively removing indentations from metal panels and the like comprising: vacuum actuated gripper means having a resilient cup member adapted to conformably engage the exterior surface of an indented panel portion, means communicating with and selectively operable for positively evacuating the interior atmosphere of said cup member to selected vacuum levels thereby to cause predetermined positive gripping engagement thereof with said surface of a said panel portion, and force transmitting means coupled to a central zone of said gripper means and operable to apply external operating force to the latter appropriate to pull the indented portion of said panel outwardly with the cup member, said force transmitting means comprising an elongated rigid bar having means for applying pulling force thereto, and the means for coupling said transmitting means to said gripper means comprising means pivotally connected at one end to said gripper means and adjustably mounted at its opposite end to said bar, and means for locking said mounting means at selected positions on said bar.
 9. The portable apparatus of claim 8 and further including fulcrum means coupled to said rigid bar and serving as a fulcrum point for applying said operating force to said gripper means.
 10. The portable apparatus of claim 9 in which said elongated rigid bar includes first and second opposed ends and in which said fulcrum means is pivotally coupled to one of said opposed ends of said elongated rigid bar. 